I know that Valentine’s Day gets a bit of a bad rep. There are a lot of people who wish they could jump from Feb 13th to Feb 15th, pretending the day never existed. Assaulted by photos of happy couples, pink and red glitter hearts everywhere, gooey saccharine poetry. I can definitely understand how that can get wearing. But after the events of this past week, I have to say I feel like we all could use an extra bit of love.
Although I recognize how the day can be tough (and have definitely had my share of anti-Valentine’s celebrations in the past), over the years I’ve adopted the belief that Valentine’s Day doesn’t necessarily have to be about romantic love. It’s about love for friends. Love for your significant other. Love for family. Bringing in chocolates for the office. Smiling at passersby on the train. And perhaps more than all of that – it’s a good day to remind yourself to have love for yourself. To take yourself on a date and put yourself first. To sport a silver sparkly Chi Chi London Allanah Dress because it makes you feel beautiful. To remember the most important relationship in your life is you. And it requires nurturing and protection and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone from time to time. Smiling in the mirror each morning and saying, “Hey, beautiful. I love you just the way you are.”
I have to admit that the Mr. and I agreed ahead of time that Feb 14th was just not going to happen for us on the actual day. Life was just too crazy and Wednesday nights are particularly hard, as I teach early in the morning the next day and like to spend my night before prepping. So, we renamed Feb 15th Valentine’s Day this year and celebrated the best way I know how: with fondue. To me, nothing says love like melted cheese.
And I found myself very grateful for the reminder to stop for a minute. To appreciate the man in front of me. To appreciate the life we built. But, to also appreciate the other people in my life. My closest friends. My sister. My ridiculously fabulous niece (who just lost her first tooth and proclaimed herself a grownup). My mom (who bought me this fabulous dress). My lab. My accomplishments. My health. And as I raced in the door that night, shedding layers of clothing and laptops, scrambling to get ready, ranting to the Mr. about the latest issue that has cropped up at work, I stopped. And remembered that Valentine’s is a day of love. It’s a day to step to the side of the stress of the week and remember all of the people you love. All of the ways in which we are lucky. Because after the events of last week and the tragedies that came to pass, I was more grateful than ever for some pink and red hearts. And people to love who were still safe in their beds.
May we all love a little bit more today than we did yesterday. And a little bit more the next day.
xoxo
Outfit Details:
Dress: gift, Chi Chi London Allanah Dress
Bracelet: Bindaring Clothing Sale (similar)
Belt: Alannah Hill (similar)
Handbag: Gift (similar here & here)
Heels: Betsey Johnson (similar here & here)
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